Yep, sounds like you have a bad infestation of scale. Personally, I would probably start over, It takes time and diligence to get rid of them ALL and it sounds like you have a lot! When you think you have finally gotten rid of them all, in a week they can be back in full force again because you missed some. Easy to do! The ones your seeing are under the brown bump is their protective covering, others could still be in the crawler stage and they are almost transparent and very tiny, they are the ones you can't see. Soapy water, or alcohol mixed with water are a couple ways to try and get rid of them, also, your finger nail could scrape them off as well. The sticky stuff is honeydew they secrete after sucking out the juice from the plants leaves. Nasty critters! Billy Rae

Hello. Sorry I do not know how old this thread is . I don't see the year they were posted. So I have a fairly new meyer lemon tree I got from Horrocks in Grand Rapids MI. Its been about 3 weeks. I noticed the other day some sap or sticky film on 2--3 leaves at the top end. I examined area around but did not see any scales but they are probably there if its caused by scale. I also got a Calamindine at the same time but looks ok. I also have a Kafir lime tree I've had since summer and is fine. I have kept the other 2 citrus away from the ML just in case. I have read several posts about remedies like using neem or horticultural oil and soap solution. Any thoughts?

A few points to consider: With any plant in a small or shallow pot, it is very difficult to control the conditions in the root zone - among other things, the soil is typically too hot in the sun (roots are cooking) and unless watering is very consistent, the substrate dries out very quickly as well. The end result is dead roots. Some plants can overcome this and recover, others cannot. Slow growing plants (like Cycads) have a more difficult time with unfavorable root conditions. A healthy "Sago" potted appropriately can easily be watered daily during the warm months. I water almost all my Cycads in pots daily. But I have them in large deep pots with a very coarse substrate so the oxygenation is excellent. My recommendation is to repot your cycad into a larger container, preferably deep. Use a high % of coarse substrate like perlite. Inspect the roots. If they are healthy they will be a light color. Water once and keep the plant in the warm shade without water for about 2 weeks. Then bring it back out into the sun, and fertilize with a high Nitrogen fertilizer. NEVER LET THE SOIL DRY OUT COMPLETELY! This will kill the roots. Depending on the size of pot, soil mix and exposure, watering every few days from the spring to the fall should be adequate. In the winter, depending on where you keep the plant, watering may be reduced significantly, but never to the point of desiccation. I can't give you any more specifics without additional info on your end. Good luck! Cycads are survivors and can put up with lots of abuse. Hopefully with some coddling, your plant will flush a new set of leaves later this summer. Read up on the care of cycads on the internet. x

Denise, I'll be the first to admit that my cat has never been entirely normal, but that's probably why we suit each other. Sorry about the plant confusion; for the longest time my only plants were ficus benjaminas and scheffleras, and I guess all I remembered was that you had one of mine.... Either way, neither this feline or the one that passed away several years ago wanted more than one taste of my scheffleras, either.